Electronic displays are now being used indoors and outdoors for a variety of different purposes. Some of these displays have also grown substantially in size and are now found in sizes over 55 inches in diagonal. Specifically for liquid crystal displays (LCD), as the backlight increases in size there is also an increase in power that is required to drive the backlight. Also, as the backlight increases in size it generates more heat which, especially in an outdoor environment (sometimes with high ambient temperatures), can become a concern.
FIG. 1 illustrates one of the previous approaches for powering and controlling an LED backlight for a large LCD display. A typical LED backlight may be divided into several sections (panels) where each section (either a single panel or several panels) is powered by its own power circuit. A typical power circuit usually contains several electronic components, including a power module and inductors. Previously, it was thought that power modules and inductors should be grouped separately, with the resulting connections for the LEDs being routed around the edge (perimeter or periphery) of the backlight. Thus, as shown in FIG. 1, several power modules 100 have electrical connections 110 running to a grouping of inductors 150. Electrical connections 160 then travel around the edge of the backlight and connect with each LED panel.
It has been found that the previous method results in a large amount of electrical connectors (wiring) with a substantial amount of assembly time in order to route and connect all of the wiring.